Category Archives: Petra

Petra, one of the 7 Wonders of the World

Petra in Jordan is impressive – established sometime in the 6th century BC as the capital city of the Nabataeans – they carved the entire city out of the rock. They didn’t build columns – they kept carving the rock until they had columns. Given the back-story, it’s some of the most impressive architecture I’ve seen. I highly recommend visiting Petra.

The Monastery of Petra, (aka Ad-Dayr or Ad-Deir in Arabic)

Petra was named one of the new seven wonders of the world in 2007; it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985.

The Monastery is massive! Petra, Jordanat the Siq, the narrow passageway to Al Khazneh (“The Treasury”)

You may recognize this spot (above photo) in Petra from the film, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The movie’s fictional “Canyon of the Crescent Moon” was modeled on this 250-foot-high (76-meter-high) sandstone slot canyon known as the Siq, which that leads directly to Al Khazneh (the Treasury). Siq pictured above.

in front of Al Khazneh (“The Treasury”) in Jordan

Established possibly as early as 312 BC as the capital city of the Nabataeans, the site remained unknown to the Western world until 1812. UNESCO has described it as “one of the most precious cultural properties of man’s cultural heritage”. Read more...(343 words, 9 images, estimated 1:22 mins reading time)

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We stopped to enjoy the view of impressive Petra during our hike up, and stopped to appreciate a woman singing at the top of the mountain. It was one of those moments where she’s singing loudly at the top of the cliff, with her voice echoing all the way down to where we stopped, but nobody else seemed to notice.

If you know what she’s singing about, or even what language she’s singing in (Arabic?) please do let me know in the comments.